Here are some FAQs about Copyright law as applies to Distance Learning. For additional questions or clarification, contact Rhona.
Whenever and wherever possible, you should provide students with the link to the place where the article/book chapters/content are posted legally online, rather than create a PDF to share.
Remember that most online newspaper and magazine publishers have paywalls in place; if you assign readings from these types of sources, consider seeking the full text of the article in the library databases and providing students with that link (and the appropriate username/password if necessary) instead of the article online. You can always contact your librarian to help you find the articles.
(We are still awaiting a decision from the NYTimes about whether or not we can have individual account access extended through the fall semester. We’ll let you know!)
If you cannot find an open source version of the content you want to provide to students, remember to use the smallest amount necessary for your educational purpose, and to edit the PDF that you put online to contain
the full citation and
the statement “FOR CLASSROOM USE ONLY. DO NOT REPRODUCE.” on the front page. (If content is in public domain - check that it wasn't pirated! - replaced this with simply "PUBLIC DOMAIN.")
BTW, you can add the citation and statement onto existing PDFs straight from your computer, using Adobe Acrobat. Here’s a short how-to on GoogleSlides.
Only under very limited circumstances. Think of it this way: if you have to do something to get around Digital Rights Management (DMR) software in order to post something, don’t.
A better rule of thumb is to provide students with direct links to online streaming video content from:
The library databases which are licensed for institutional use (e.g. Classroom Video On Demand, the Gale In Context databases, Digital Theatre Plus). Provide the Username/Passwords with your links.
Open source sites such as YouTube (but be careful about illegally uploaded copyrighted materials being posted by third parties)
By October, all GDS students should have valid DC Public Library cards, and will thus be able to watch videos from Access Video on Demand, Kanopy, Kanopy Kids, Brightstorm, etc. (https://www.dclibrary.org/godigital/watch)
If it’s a video you made yourself (i.e. on Loom), go for it. If it’s legally available as open source (e.g. YouTube) or via one of GDS’s streaming video databases, go for it. Danny & Elyon give this advice:
1) Reduce the surface area the video takes on your screen. That means, simply shrink the video window itself until it covers less than one-third of your screen. You can do this by pushing COMMAND and – together several times in QuickTime or on your browser (Macs).
2) Screenshare AND check ✅ the two boxes for “Play computer sound“ and “optimize for videos.” If you have not used “play computer sound” before, you will be prompted to enter your password. You must shut down the Zoom program completely (not just ending the call). You’ll be good to go once you restart the program—might as well be sure you’ve updated to the newest version!”
If it’s a copyrighted video/film, this gets tricky, because the exceptions to copyright law pertaining to education contain the constraint that they be shown “in face-to-face instructional settings” and the law doesn’t think Zoom classes count as such. (See this article from JD Supra for more.)
Basically, the answer is no… unless the showing fits the following parameters:
You’re only using a short clip, and it’s directly related to instructional content
You make sure the kids aren’t recording the session
It’s a nondramatic work (e.g. documentary, news, or instructional)
And please remember that streaming from Netflix, Disney Plus, or Amazon Prime is a no, as it’s a violation of user agreements with those companies and therefore violates the clause that video used in classes be “obtained legally.” (Which means you’re mostly left with using a DVD via an optical reader on your computer, or you’re back to using a streaming video database source.)
Whenever possible, rather than streaming film in synchronous learning time over Zoom, it is preferable to find content that is legally open source (watch out for YouTube uploads of copyrighted material by third parties!) or available through a free or GDS-paid institutional subscription. Provide the link and/or log-in credentials for students to watch on their own.
By October, all GDS students should have valid DC Public Library cards, and will thus be able to watch videos from Access Video on Demand, Kanopy, Kanopy Kids, Brightstorm, etc. (https://www.dclibrary.org/godigital/watch)
If you are having trouble finding content, please contact your librarian for assistance.
This is an equity issue: the way Netflix parties work is that everyone uses their own personal Netflix accounts. The “party” extension merely syncs up all the watchers.
If you share your Netflix passwords with others, you are violating your Netflix agreement. (Netflix agreements are written for individuals, not for institutions.)
Instead, consider looking for a film or clip that is available through open access or the subscriptions to which all our students have access.